Wikipedia marked its 25th anniversary on Thursday, January 15, celebrating a quarter-century of making free, reliable, human-powered knowledge accessible to billions of people worldwide.
As the platform enters its next chapter, its social arm – the Wikimedia Foundation — the nonprofit organization that operates Wikipedia — has launched a global campaign, inviting users to explore the platform’s evolution, celebrate the volunteers who sustain it, and engage with its future at a time when digital trust, artificial intelligence (AI), and access to verified information have never been more critical.
Maryana Iskander, Chief Executive Officer of the Wikimedia Foundation said the platform has become integral to the architecture of the entire internet, with monthly visits going up, and an ever-growing number of organizations relying on Wikipedia’s free, verified knowledge.
“Wikipedia is a digital wonder of the world, unlike anything else,” said Ms. Iskander. “It has overcome countless challenges and changes in its time, thanks to the people behind it and their unwavering commitment to sharing free, reliable knowledge with the world.”
Iskander said the consistent growth of the platform over the years has birthed “video docuseries” offering a behind-the-scenes look at the lives and motivations of volunteer editors from around the world.
The platform churns out 65 million articles – which are written, edited, and fact-checked by a global community of nearly 250,000 volunteers, operating under “strict standards of neutrality and reliability”.
“As we look to the next billion people who will come online, Africa will have a critical role to play in ensuring that Wikipedia’s knowledge — and by extension the wider internet — reflects the richness of the continent and its people,” said Bobby Shabangu, Wikimedia Foundation Board Trustee.
That influence is already visible through the growth of African contributor communities, local language projects, and community-led innovation — positioning the continent not just as a consumer of digital knowledge, but as a creator and curator in the global AI ecosystem.
The docuseries features eight editors, including Goodness Ignatius from Nigeria, whose work exemplifies Africa’s growing role in shaping global digital knowledge. A librarian by profession, Ignatius contributes to Wikipedia, Wikidata, and Wikimedia Commons, and is an active member of the Igbo Wikimedians User Group. She also co-founded the Ig Wiki Librarians Hub, strengthening collaboration among information professionals in Nigeria’s Igbo community.
In some instances, stories of professionals like Ignatius reflects a brighter future, particularly in the era of AI, and shows that knowledge remains human — and needs humans.
Digital time capsule
The Foundation has also unveiled a “25 Years of Wikipedia” digital time capsule, allowing users to explore defining moments in the platform’s history and its role during major global events. The capsule includes reflections from Wikipedia Founder Jimmy Wales, who recalls installing the site’s first servers, as well as moments when Wikipedia’s infrastructure was stretched by global demand — including the surge in traffic following the death of Michael Jackson in 2009.
The experience also celebrates Wikipedia’s “more playful side”, from quirky articles to unexpected cultural phenomena, underscoring how the platform blends serious reference material with the collective curiosity of the internet.
Looking ahead, a new interactive quiz invites users to discover which imagined “Wikipedia future” resonates with them. These futures were co-created by Wikipedia editors, children, futurists, and artists, offering diverse visions of how knowledge might be shared in the decades ahead.
Backbone of AI-driven knowledge
As AI reshapes how information is created, accessed, and consumed, Wikipedia’s role has become even more significant. Today, Wikipedia is among the top ten most-visited websites globally — and the only one run by a nonprofit. Its articles, available in more than 300 languages, are viewed nearly 15 billion times every month and are widely used by search engines, voice assistants, and generative AI systems.
Wikipedia is also one of the highest-quality datasets used to train Large Language Models, reinforcing its position as a trusted foundation for the AI-powered internet.
To meet this moment, the Wikimedia Foundation has deepened partnerships with major technology companies through Wikimedia Enterprise, a commercial platform that provides large-scale access to Wikimedia content while supporting the Foundation’s nonprofit mission. New partners over the past year include Ecosia, Microsoft, Mistral AI, Perplexity, Pleias, and ProRata, joining existing partners such as Amazon, Google, and Meta.
At the same time, the Foundation has adopted an AI strategy that puts humans first, ensuring AI tools support volunteer contributors rather than replace them. Ongoing investments in infrastructure, accessibility features such as dark mode, mobile apps, and new data centers have further strengthened Wikipedia’s reach, particularly in regions where mobile access is key.
Efforts to close knowledge gaps have also accelerated, with initiatives to expand content in under-represented languages and communities. Projects such as Abstract Wikipedia, designed to make knowledge available in all languages, underscore Africa’s strategic importance in shaping a more inclusive digital future.
A year of celebration
Wikipedia’s anniversary celebrations will continue throughout 2026, including a global virtual birthday event, social media activations, limited-edition merchandise, and playful digital features such as “Birthday mode” and the debut of Baby Globe, a new mascot inspired by volunteer sketches.
“In 2001, Wikipedia started as a dream to share knowledge with everyone, everywhere,” said Jimmy Wales, Wikipedia Founder and Wikimedia Foundation Trustee. “Against all odds, Wikipedia has grown to become the backbone of knowledge on the internet today. Wikipedia demonstrates 25 years of humanity at its best.”
